Benjamin Netanyahu calls early Israel election

Israel was propelled into election season one year ahead of schedule on Sunday
night with an announcement from Benjamin Netanyahu that the country will
take to the polls in four months.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a speech to hi party members in Tel AvivPhoto: AP

By Phoebe Greenwood in Tel Aviv

7:05PM BST 06 May 2012

“I am not interested in a year and a half long election campaign that would damage the country. I would rather have a four-month swift election campaign that would bring political system to stability quickly,” Mr Netanyahu told fellow Likud party members during his opening address at their annual conference in Tel Aviv.

Mr Netanyahu praised leaders of rival parties, whom he conceded had “much to offer” but swiftly dismissed them as viable candidates to replace him as prime minister.

“The state of Israel cannot afford to have a prime minister without the economic, diplomatic and security experience necessary [for the job],” he said.

Mr Netanyahu's announcement had long been predicted by Israeli media and government officials.

"The prime minister wants an election but he needs to be seen to have been forced to call one ... Netanyahu understands that his situation in the polls quite rare. He's a head with about one quarter of the votes," said Amit Segal, political correspondent for Israel's Channel 2.

The popular consensus among Israeli commentators is that divisions between the three major opposition parties – Kadima, Labor and the new Lapid party, fronted by right-wing former talk-show host Yair Lapid – assures Mr Netanyahu's return for another term as prime minister.

Mr Netanyahu's Likud party is polled to win almost a quarter of seats in the Knesset while Kadima, currently the country's largest political party, is thought to have vanished from the political map with as few as eight seats.

Many anticipate the Likud leader aims to sever electoral ties to Avigdor Lieberman, his right-wing coalition partner and foreign minister, and seek out a centrist party to form a coalition.

"I don't think the prime minister will evacuate Judea and Samaria but just because he is Likud, does not mean he is not considering it. He is not the staunch republican 'Likudnik' he used to be," Mr Segal said.

For the next four months, until a new government is elected, the Knesset will cease to function and no legislation can be passed. The caretaker government we only be able to act if "an urgent need arises," leading more cynical pundits to speculate the Mr Netanyahu's decision to call an early election would enable him to launch a strike on Iran's nuclear facilities without parliamentary resistance.

Shaul Mofaz, the recently elected head of Kadima and likely coalition partner, is an outspoken opponent of using military might to tackle the Iranian nuclear threat.